


Plain Old John Deacon

by KyluxFicHell



Category: Bohemian Rhapsody (Movie 2018), Queen (Band)
Genre: Boys having cuddles, Fluff, M/M, Modern AU, Platonic John/Roger, Supportive John, all the boys are gay
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-25
Updated: 2018-11-25
Packaged: 2019-08-29 06:43:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,378
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16739026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KyluxFicHell/pseuds/KyluxFicHell
Summary: ”Rog?” John’s voice is still thick from sleep. “What’s the matter?”He can now see that Roger’s blue eyes are glistening with unshed tears. John sits up a little more and frowns, concern starting to seep through him.“Nothing,” Roger says quickly, although his voice is still a little shaky. “I just got back from the pub with Freddie and I forgot that Brian’s at his parents tonight.” He swallows, biting his lip again. “I’m feeling a bit rubbish and, well...I could do with a cuddle, mate.”OR- John Deacon gives the best cuddles.





	Plain Old John Deacon

**Author's Note:**

> My first Queen fic! Modern AU (although it’s not explicit), all the boys are gay and live together. 
> 
> Feedback and comments appreciated!
> 
> Tumblr: @bohemian-rhapsody-slash

John knows that something is wrong when Roger knocks on his bedroom door tentatively at one in the morning.

Roger rarely does anything _tentatively_.

“Deaky?” Roger’s voice is quiet and a little shaky as he pokes his blond head round the door.

John blinks his eyes a few times, his mind clouded by the haziness of sleep as he shifts himself onto his elbows. The gentle light streaming into his room from the hallway makes his vision a little fuzzy, but once his eyes adjust he can see Roger looking at him uncertainly, biting his bottom lip.

“Rog?” John’s voice is still thick from sleep. “What’s the matter?”

He can now see that Roger’s blue eyes are glistening with unshed tears. John sits up a little more and frowns, concern starting to seep through him. 

“Nothing,” Roger says quickly, although his voice is still a little shaky. “I just got back from the pub with Freddie and I forgot that Brian’s at his parents tonight.” He swallows, biting his lip again. “I’m feeling a bit rubbish and, well...I could do with a cuddle, mate.”

The last part catches John off guard a little. It’s rare but not unusual for the two of them to share the odd cuddle when Brian’s not around; Roger can be very touchy-feely and John supposes he’s more similar to Brian than Freddie is, both physically and in his quiet demeanour. John finds that most of his band mates often turn to him for advice or comfort, and he still can’t quite figure out why. Despite being the youngest member of the group, John often feels like the oldest.

“Of course,” John says, tongue heavy as he shifts over in bed to make room.

Roger gives him a small grateful smile before slipping into the room and closing the door behind him. He’s wearing an old oversized t-shirt, which John presumes must belong to Brian as it covers the tops of Roger’s thighs, and his legs are bare. John can see the bottom of his friend’s boxer-briefs just below the hem of the t-shirt, clinging to his slim thighs. 

“Come on, trouble.” John pats the mattress beside him. “Come and tell me why you’re feeling so rubbish.”

Roger tucks a stray strand of blond hair behind his ear and folds his arms over his chest as he pads over to the bed. The mattress dips as he climbs in, and John gives him a reassuring smile when Roger pulls the duvet over both of them, resting his head on John’s chest. John wraps an arm around his friend and pulls him close.

“What’s got you so upset then, Rog?” John asks gently. “Are you missing Brian?”

There’s a slight pause.

“It’s not that,” Roger mumbles eventually against John’s collarbone. “I mean, of course I miss him. But...well, I had a bit of a shit night.”

“Oh?” John strokes his friend’s hair gently. 

“Yeah.” Roger takes John’s free hand in his own and laces their fingers together. “Tim was there.”

“Tim?” John frowns. “As in, your ex-boyfriend Tim? The guy you used to play with in Smile?”

John had met Tim very briefly a couple of times. He seemed like a nice enough guy, but John had always felt a little uneasy around him for a reason which he couldn’t quite put his finger on.

“Yep.” Roger looks utterly miserable at this point. “It’s the first time I’ve seen him since we split up.”

John shifts closer to the other man. “What happened?”

“At first he was really friendly. Bought me a drink, we had a catch up. But then he got a bit funny when he found out that I’m with Brian now.”

Roger’s voice wobbles a bit at that point, and John starts rubbing soothing circles into his back.

“He said some shitty things about Brian,” Roger continues. “Which made me really angry. He said he couldn’t understand what I see in a ‘ _lanky dorky git_ ’ like Brian. Then he asked me how many men I’d slept with since we broke up, and then he-“ Roger buries his face in John’s neck- “he told me he never thought that fame would turn me into such a _slut_.”

“What?” John can feel his blood start to boil as he tightens his hold on his friend. “He said _what_ to you?”

“Yeah,” Roger laughs shakily. “What a dick. Anyway, Freddie could see me looking upset so he came over and asked what was going on, and then-“ Roger breaks off, and it’s only then that John notices his t-shirt is slightly damp. 

“Hey,” John says gently, squeezing Roger’s hand and dropping his other hand to Roger’s waist. “It’s ok, Rog.  You’re here with me, you’re safe. Talk to me.”

Roger looks up to meet John’s gaze, his blue eyes shining, cheeks wet and flushed. John’s never seen him look so vulnerable. 

Roger swallows. “Then Tim asked Freddie whether he’d fucked me. Whether _you’d_ fucked me. He asked whether I’m the fucking band _whore_ and whether you all only keep me around because I have a nice arse, which he said is the only reason he and Brian used to keep me around in Smile.”

John’s heart sinks as he feels Roger tremble in his arms, sobbing gently against his chest. 

“What an utter prick,” John snorts. “You know that’s all bullshit. They kept you around in Smile for the same reason we need you as a part of Queen- because you’re an amazing drummer. An amazing singer. And you write amazing songs.”

Roger gives John’s shoulder a playful nudge. “Shut the fuck up.” His voice is still thick and his eyes are still wet, but he’s stopped crying at least. 

“You’re an amazing friend too,” John says with a smile. “I don’t know what I’d do without you. Tim’s just bitter that he lost the best thing that ever happened to him. He wanted you in his band for more than just your arse, Roge. Brian too. Even though Brian was _definitely_ a fan of your arse at the time.”

“That’s not true!” Roger laughs properly for the first time. “Brian was not a fan of my arse back then. That was years ago!”

“Brian’s fancied you for years,” John says confidently. He feels a little guilty for sharing a secret that Brian entrusted him with, but he’s sure his band mate will forgive him when he finds out how much it cheered Roger up. “He’ll probably kill me for saying this, but he told me so himself. He had a big old crush on you back in Smile and was pretty jealous of Tim.”

“You’re not being serious, Deaky?” Roger’s smile is warm and genuine now. 

“Yep,” John laughs. “He never thought you’d go for a guy like him in a million years. Guess he was wrong, eh? Tim too.”

“Yeah.” Roger squeezes John’s hand. “Thanks, Deaky.”

“Anytime, mate.” John presses a kiss to his friend’s blond hair. “So how did Freddie react to Tim’s bullshit?”

“Freddie punched him.”

“Freddie _what_?”

“Yeah,” Roger laughs. He looks almost giddy with happiness now. “Freddie punched him, they had a bit of a scuffle. Me and a few other people managed to pull them apart and we left pretty quickly. We came back here and then Freddie passed out in bed.” 

“And then you came here for a cuddle?” John supplies.

“Then I came here for a cuddle,” Roger confirms. “And I’m so glad I did. Thanks, Deaky. I knew you’d make me feel better.”

John smiles. “You’re welcome. Although I’ll have to tell your boyfriend to try and make sure he’s around next time you’re having a wobble.”

Roger rolls his eyes. “I wasn’t having a _wobble_.” He pauses and raises an eyebrow as he remembers something. “Hey, didn’t you have a date tonight? Why on earth isn’t there a sexy man other than myself in this bed with you?”

John blushes and tries to push away the memories of his own shitty evening. He’d been feeling pretty rubbish tonight too, but talking with Roger had helped him to mostly forget about it.

“Yeah, um. It just wasn’t going to work out.”

“Oh.” Roger strokes Johns bicep soothingly. “I’m sorry to hear that. Wanna talk about it?”

John shrugs. “It’s fine. He turned out to be a bit of an arse. He said I was a bit too plain for him.”

“ _Plain_?” Roger frowns. “What the fuck is he talking about?”

John grits his teeth. “Come on Rog. He may have been a bit blunt about it but he was telling the truth. Of the four of us, I am the most plain.”

Roger opens up his mouth to argue, but John interrupts him.

“Freddie is so glamorous that he’s the absolute opposite of plain. Brian’s tall and sexy. You’re the beautiful blond. Then there’s me. Plain old John Deacon.”

John blinks away his own tears, trying to ignore his own pounding heart. It’s an insecurity he tries not to think about very often, but he’s finding it very hard now when he knows how he must look lying next to someone as ridiculously lovely as Roger. 

Roger looks at him as though he’s crazy. “ _Plain old John Deacon_? Deaky, you must be joking. When you first joined the band Brian used to go on about how lanky and awkward he looked next to the _sexy_ guitarist.”

John snorts. “Brian May never called me sexy.”

“He did,” Roger insists. “He felt so self conscious standing next to you on stage. He always thought _he_ was the plain one.”

John feels a little better hearing that. 

“Also I’m pretty sure Freddie had a raging crush on you when you joined.”

John cracks a smile. “Ok, you win. I feel better.”

“Good.” Roger grins and throws a slim thigh over John’s legs. “We can’t have our Deaky feeling rubbish about himself. We’ll find you a man who deserves you, Deak, don’t you worry.”

John laughs, his earlier sadness forgotten.  “I think I’m lucky enough to have three men in my life who deserve me.”

Roger looks as though he’s radiating with happiness. “Can I sleep here tonight? Don’t want to be alone.”

“Yeah, go on then,” John yawns. “But make sure you tell Brian it was _your_ idea to spend the night in my bed in your underwear, and I didn’t try to feel you up.”

“Brian won’t mind. I’ll tell him you took care of me.”

The truth is John enjoys taking care of his band mates. Sometimes John feels a little insecure about his place in Queen, as he’s never felt as though he was quite as close to the other three as they seemed to be to each other. But when they seek him out like this and he’s able to comfort them until they fall asleep in his arms, he understands he plays a role in this band that they will probably never be able to replace. 

The last thing John registers before drifting off to sleep is a warm lump on his chest and blond hair tickling his nose.

******

When John wakes up the next morning, he’s surprised to find the bed empty.

He can hear voices drifting from the flat’s kitchen, so he pulls himself out of bed and stumbles down the hallway. He assumes that Brian must be back and Roger must have got up to greet him.

When John enters the kitchen he’s surprised to find Freddie sitting at the kitchen table, a large bruise blooming on his right cheek, scowling as Brian fusses over him with a bag of peas and Roger watches on with amusement from his seat at the other end. 

“Really, dear,” Freddie huffs, “I’ve had worse punches from my sister.”

“You still need to look after yourself, Fred,” Brian says with a roll of his eyes. He notices John has entered the room. “Will you tell him, Deaky?”

“He’s right.” John pads over to the kettle to make some tea. “We all need to take care of ourselves.” He shoots a quick wink at Roger, who smiles shyly back in return. 

“I think I need to thank you too, you know,” Brian says in John’s direction, pressing the bag of peas against Freddie’s face. “I hear you took care of Rog last night after Freddie passed out.”

Freddie grumbles under his breath and Roger catches John’s eye again, smiling and blushing slightly. 

“Er, yeah.” John grins. “We had a cuddle and a talk.” 

Brian smiles back. “Good. I regret I couldn’t be here but I’m glad I’ve got you two to take care of him.”

“We take care of each other,” Roger chips in, standing up so he can pad over to give John a hug from behind. He’s still wearing nothing but the oversized t-shirt and his underwear.

“We certainly do,” Freddie says with a wave of his hand. “And Roger dear, you must know we are going to be all the more willing to take care of you if you parade around in your tight little underwear like you are now.”

“I am not _parading_ ,” Roger scowls, folding his arms over his chest after tugging his t-shirt down self-consciously. 

Brian rolls his eyes. “Well if I ever run in to Tim again I can tell you I’m gonna fucking kill him.” 

“Don’t even mention his name,” Roger grumbles. He slides over to Brian, pushes himself up into his toes and gives his boyfriend a gentle kiss on the lips. “Come and have a shower with me? Make me forget about him?”

Brian grins and kisses him back, and John pretends he doesn’t notice one hand sliding down Roger’s back to momentarily squeeze the curve of his arse. “I’d love to. Go and get ready.” He gives Roger’s arse a gentle smack.

Once Roger has disappeared, and taken a grumbling Freddie with him to lie down, Brian turns to John.

“Thanks again, Deak. He was feeling pretty low last night.”

“Any time,” John smiles.

“But _please_ ,” Brian begs, glancing towards the kitchen door, “do _not_ tell Freddie that I’ve fancied Rog since Smile. I’ll never hear the end of it.”

John laughs into his mug of tea. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

END


End file.
